U.S. patent number 5,667,173 [Application Number 08/558,963] was granted by the patent office on 1997-09-16 for compact rack construction for mounting t-shirt type plastic bags.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Sonoco Products Company. Invention is credited to Edwin W. Haenni, Harry B. Wilfong, Jr..
United States Patent |
5,667,173 |
Wilfong, Jr. , et
al. |
September 16, 1997 |
Compact rack construction for mounting T-shirt type plastic
bags
Abstract
A compact rack construction is provided for mounting a pack of
thermoplastic grocery or retail product bags of the T-shirt type
and which includes a frame and a pair of generally horizontally and
outwardly extending laterally-spaced support arms for receiving the
apertures in the handles of the bags in the pack at an outer end
portion and for mounting the bag pack on a horizontal portion for
consecutive opening and removal of the bags from the bag pack and
from the rack. Each of the support arms include an upper surface
and a lower surface extending horizontally from the frame to define
the horizontal portion of the support arms therebetween and then
extending upwardly from horizontal at predetermined different
angles and being joined at outer ends to each other by a loop
surface formed with a smooth radius to define the support arm outer
end portion therebetween. The upward extension of said lower
surface is offset forward with respect to the upward extension of
said upper surface. This construction allows mounting of the bag
pack on the support arms over the outer end portion, while
providing a resistance to free movement of the handles of the bags
off the outer end portion of the support arms.
Inventors: |
Wilfong, Jr.; Harry B.
(Hartsville, SC), Haenni; Edwin W. (Hartsville, SC) |
Assignee: |
Sonoco Products Company
(Hartsville, SC)
|
Family
ID: |
24231715 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/558,963 |
Filed: |
November 13, 1995 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
248/100; 248/97;
248/99; D6/566 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65B
43/14 (20130101); B65D 33/001 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
33/00 (20060101); B65B 43/00 (20060101); B65B
43/14 (20060101); B65B 067/04 () |
Field of
Search: |
;248/100,101,99,95,175 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Ramirez; Ramon O.
Assistant Examiner: Berry, Jr.; Willie
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Bell, Seltzer, Park & Gibson
P.A.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A rack for mounting a pack of thermoplastic grocery or retail
product bags of the T-shirt type having a pair of laterally-spaced
handles extending upwardly from a body portion on either side of an
open-mouth portion and having mounting apertures of a predetermined
length through the handles, said rack comprising:
a frame;
a pair of generally horizontally and outwardly extending
laterally-spaced support arms carried at one end by said frame and
having a horizontal portion and an outer end portion for receiving
the apertures in the handles of the bags in the pack at said outer
end portion and for mounting the bag pack on said horizontal
portion for consecutive opening and removal of the bags from the
bag pack and from said rack; and
each of said support arms comprising an upper surface and a lower
surface, each of said surfaces extending horizontally outwardly
from said frame to define said support arm horizontal portion
therebetween and then extending upwardly from horizontal at
predetermined different angles and being joined at outer ends to
each other by a loop surface formed with a smooth radius to define
said support arm outer end portion therebetween, the upward
extension of said lower surface being outwardly offset from the
upward extension of said upper surface, whereby a resistance to
free movement of the handles of the bags off said outer end
portions of support arms is created.
2. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, wherein a mounting width of
said outer free end portion of each of said support arms measured
parallel to said upwardly angled surface is generally no greater
than the predetermined length of the mounting apertures of the
handles of the bags to permit easy mounting of the bag packs on
said support arms, and a resistance width of said outer free end
portion of each of said support arms measured vertically of said
support arm is generally greater than the predetermined length of
the mounting apertures of the handles of the bags to enhance the
resistance to free movement of the bags off said support arms.
3. A rack, as set forth in claim 2, in which said upper and lower
surfaces of said support arm comprise upper and lower wire members
extending respectively from said frame and joined at said loop
surface at said outer end portion.
4. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the
lateral-spacing of said support arms corresponds generally to
lateral spacing of the mounting apertures in the handles of the
bags so that the handles of a bag pack extend upward in their
natural shape when the bag pack is mounted on the rack.
5. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said support
arms are generally of a length less than the outwardly extending
dimensions of a bag open for loading and greater than the thickness
of the bag pack.
6. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the
lateral-spacing of said support arms corresponds generally to
lateral spacing of the mounting apertures in the handles of the
bags so that the handles of a bag pack extend upward in their
natural shape when the bag pack is mounted on the rack and wherein
said support arms are generally of a length less than the outwardly
extending dimensions of the bag open for loading and greater than
the thickness of the bag pack to provide a compact rack
construction.
7. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said frame is
of a size corresponding generally to an open area between the
laterally-spaced handles of the bags and includes means for
mounting said frame to a flat vertical surface.
8. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the
lateral-spacing of said support arms corresponds generally to
lateral spacing of the mounting apertures in the handles of the
bags so that the handles of a bag pack extend upward in their
natural shape when the bag pack is mounted on the rack, said
support arms are generally of a length less than the outwardly
extending dimensions of the bag open for loading and greater than
the thickness of the bag pack, and said frame comprises a frame of
a size corresponding generally to an open area between the
laterally-spaced handles of the bags and includes means for
mounting said frame to a flat vertical surface, whereby a compact
rack construction is provided.
9. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the T-shirt
type bags in the bag pack each include a detachable mounting tab
extending upwardly from the open-mouth portion and having a
mounting aperture therein, and said rack further includes a bag
mounting tab retaining means carried by said frame for receiving
the apertures in the mounting tabs and mounting thereon the
mounting tabs of the bags in the bag pack, said bag mounting tab
retaining means comprising a hook of sufficient length and width to
provide a surface to support the bag mounting tabs from the rear
when a bag on the front of the bag pack is engaged by a user to
remove a bag from the bag pack and the rack.
10. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the horizontal
portion of said lower surface of said support arms is longer than
the horizontal portion of said upper surface of said support arms
by a distance equal to the offset between the beginnings of the
upward extensions of said upper and lower surfaces.
11. A rack, as set forth in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein, said lower
surface of said support arm includes a further portion extending
downwardly from said horizontal portion to said lower upwardly
extending surface of said outer end portion to further enhance the
resistance to free movement of the handles of the bags off said
outer end portions of said support arms.
12. A rack, as set forth in claim 7, wherein said frame comprises a
wire frame.
13. A rack, as set forth in claim 2 or 3, wherein the angle of said
upwardly extending surface of said outer end portion of said
support arms equals .theta..sub.1, the vertical width of said
horizontal portion of said support arms equals C, the offset
between the upward extension of said lower surface and the upward
extension of said upper surface of said outer end portions of said
support arms equals D, the mounting width of said outer end portion
of said support arms measured parallel to said upwardly angled
surface of said outer end portion of said support arms equals
W.sub.1, the resistance width of said outer end portion of said
support arms measured vertically equals W.sub.2, and wherein
W.sub.2 =W.sub.1 /COS .theta..sub.1 and D=(W.sub.2 -C)/TAN
.theta..sub.1.
14. A compact rack for mounting a pack of thermoplastic grocery or
retail product bags of the T-shirt type having a pair of
laterally-spaced handles extending upwardly from a body portion on
either side of an open-mouth portion and having apertures of a
predetermined length through the handles and a detachable mounting
tab extending upwardly from the open mouth portion and having a
mounting aperture therein, said rack comprising:
a wire frame of a size corresponding generally to an open area
between the laterally-spaced handles of the bags of the pack and
including means for mounting said frame to a flat vertical
surface;
a pair of generally horizontally and outwardly extending
laterally-spaced support arms carried at one end by said frame and
having a horizontal portion and an outer end portion for receiving
the apertures in the handles of the bags in the pack at said outer
end portion and for mounting the bag pack on said horizontal
portion for consecutive opening and removal of the bags from the
bag pack and from said rack, the lateral-spacing of said support
arms corresponding generally to the lateral-spacing of the mounting
apertures in the handles of the bags so that the handles of the bag
pack extend upwardly in their natural shape when the bag pack is
mounted on the rack, and said support arms being generally of a
length less than the outwardly extending dimensions of the bag
opened for loading and greater than the thickness of the bag
pack;
each of said support arms comprising an upper wire member and a
lower wire member, each of said wire members extending horizontally
at an inner end from said frame to define said support arm
horizontal portion and being bent upwardly from horizontal at
predetermined different angles near an outer end thereof and joined
at the outer end to each other by a looped portion formed with a
smooth radius to define said support arm outer end portion having
upwardly angled upper and lower straight portions joined by said
looped portion, the bend in said lower wire member being outwardly
offset from the bend in said upper wire portion to define a
horizontal portion of said lower wire member longer than a
horizontal portion of said upper wire member by a distance equal to
the offset between the bends in said upper and lower wire member, a
mounting width of said outer free end portions of each of said
support arms measured parallel to said angled straight portions of
said upper wire is generally no greater than the predetermined
length of the mounting apertures of the handles of the bags to
permit easy mounting of the bag packs on said support arms, and a
resistance width of said outer free end portions of each of said
support arms measured vertically of said support arms is generally
greater than the predetermined length of the mounting apertures of
the handles of the bags to enhance the resistance to free movement
of the bags off said support arms; and
a bag mounting tab retaining means carried by said frame for
receiving the apertures in the mounting tabs and mounting thereon
the mounting tabs of the bags in the bag pack and comprising a
looped wire hook of sufficient length to provide a surface to
support the bag mounting tabs from the rear when a bag on the front
of the bag pack is engaged by a user to remove a bag from the bag
pack and the rack.
15. A compact rack for mounting a pack of thermoplastic grocery or
retail product bags of the T-shirt type having a pair of
laterally-spaced handles extending upwardly from a body portion on
either side of an open-mouth portion and having apertures of a
predetermined length through the handles and a detachable mounting
tab extending upwardly from the open mouth portion and having a
mounting aperture therein, said rack comprising:
a wire frame of a size corresponding generally to an open area
between the laterally-spaced handles of the bags of the pack and
including means for mounting said frame to a flat vertical
surface;
a pair of generally horizontally and outwardly extending
laterally-spaced support arms carried at one end by said frame and
having a horizontal portion and an outer end portion for receiving
the apertures in the handles of the bags in the pack at said outer
end portion and for mounting the bag pack on said horizontal
portion for consecutive opening and removal of the bags from the
bag pack and from said rack, the lateral-spacing of said support
arms corresponding generally to the lateral-spacing of the mounting
apertures in the handles of the bags so that the handles of the bag
pack extend upwardly in their natural shape when the bag pack is
mounted on the rack, and said support arms being generally of a
length less than the outwardly extending dimensions of the bag
opened for loading and greater than the thickness of the bag
pack;
each of said support arms comprising an upper wire member and a
lower wire member, each of said wire members extending horizontally
at an inner end from said frame to define said support arm
horizontal portion and being bent upwardly from horizontal at
predetermined different angles near an outer end thereof and joined
at the outer end to each other by a looped portion formed with a
smooth radius to define said support arm outer end portion having
upwardly angled upper and lower straight portions joined by said
looped portion, the upward bend in said lower wire member being
outwardly offset from the upward bend in said upper wire portion,
said lower wire member further includes a downward bend from said
horizontal portion to define a downwardly angled straight portion
extending to said upwardly extending bend and said upwardly angled
straight portion in said lower wire member, a mounting width of
said outer free end portions of each of said support arms measured
parallel to said angled straight portions of said upper wire is
generally no greater than the predetermined length of the mounting
apertures of the handles of the bags to permit easy mounting of the
bag packs on said support arms, and a resistance width of said
outer free end portions of each of said support arms measured
vertically of said support arms is generally greater than the
predetermined length of the mounting apertures of the handles of
the bags to enhance the resistance to free movement of the bags off
said support arms; and
a bag mounting tab retaining means carried by said frame for
receiving the apertures in the mounting tabs and mounting thereon
the mounting tabs of the bags in the bag pack and comprising a
looped wire hook of sufficient length to provide a surface to
support the bag mounting tabs from the rear when a bag on the front
of the bag pack is engaged by a user to remove a bag from the bag
pack and the rack.
16. A rack, as set forth in claims 14 or 15, wherein the upward
angle of bend from horizontal of said upper wire of said support
arms equals .theta..sub.1, the vertical width of said horizontal
portion of said support arms equals C, the offset between the bends
in said upper and lower wires of said support arm equals D, the
mounting width of said outer free end portion of said support arms
measured parallel to said upper wire angled straight portion equals
W.sub.1, the resistance width of said outer free end portion of
said support arms measured vertically equals W.sub.2, and wherein
W.sub.2 =W.sub.1 /COS .theta..sub.1 and D=(W.sub.2 -C)/TAN
.theta..sub.1.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a compact rack construction for-mounting
a pack of thermoplastic grocery or retail product bags of the
T-shirt type and which is adapted to be mounted to a vertical wall
or the like at a check-out counter to conserve counter space.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Plastic bags have been replacing paper bags in the United States
since the 1970s for the grocery and retail product industries due
to superior and inherent moisture resistant properties and strength
of plastic, among other things. For these industries, these plastic
bags usually are of the T-shirt type which include front and rear
wall sections integrally connected by gussetted side walls and
connected at the bottom to define a closed bottom on the bag. At
least a part of the front and rear wall sections are open at the
tops to define a mouth portion. Laterally spaced handles, integral
with the front, rear and gussetted side wall sections, extend
upwardly from opposed sides of the mouth portion and include
mounting apertures of a predetermined length formed through the
handles.
These types of bags for the grocery and retail product industries
have been marketed by the assignee of the present invention as the
highly commercially successful QUIKMATE.RTM. bagging system,
described in U.S. Pat. No. Re. 33,264, reissued Jul. 17, 1990. This
system includes a plurality of such T-shirt bags formed into a bag
pack and mounted on horizontally-extending support arms of the rack
through the mounting apertures in the handles of the bag for being
opened and loaded one-at-a-time and removed from the rack after
being loaded.
The traditional grocery bag rack utilized with the above described
system and with most other systems is designed to be
self-supporting for sitting on top of a grocery counter check-out
or other check-out counters and has evolved generally to the
constructions shown in later issued U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,335,788 and
5,362,152, which are assigned to the assignee of the present
invention. These prior rack constructions usually include a base
portion designed to sit on a check-out counter or the like to
render the racks self-supporting and the support arms are of a
sufficient length so that the bags can be consecutively opened-up
along the length of the support arms and loaded prior to removal
from the support arms. The support arms are also spaced-apart a
sufficient distance to maximize the mouth opening of the bag and
generally position the bag handles at outwardly extending angles
from the bag mouth. These prior rack constructions present problems
in retail and convenience stores where space is a premium due to
large items being checked-out or where there is not sufficient room
for a bag rack system of this type. In these situations, it would
be desirable to have a bag rack which could be mounted on a
vertical wall, such as the inside of the check-out counter or the
like, and which would be able to hold a bag pack for removal of
these T-shirt bags one-at-a-time.
In light of the above problem, some rack manufacturers have
recently put out a small rack, as shown in FIG. 1 hereof and
labeled "Prior Art". This prior art rack construction, indicated at
110, includes a frame member 111 adapted to be attached to a
vertical wall by screws or the like and has two short support arms
120 extending outwardly therefrom with looped outer end portions
122 for receiving and holding the handles H of a plurality of bags
B forming a bag pack P through mounting apertures A in the bag
handles H and which includes a central hook 113 for holding a
central tab T of each of the bags B in the pack P. This rack 110
was adapted to be used by opening-up and removing the bags
consecutively from the bag pack. When opening up of the bag, the
handle portions attached to the front wall of the bag were removed
from the rack support arms and the bag hung open on the rack from
the handle portions attached to the rear wall of the bag for
loading by the user and subsequently being removed entirely from
the rack.
While this recently introduced prior art rack construction 110
helped with the space problems presented with earlier prior art
racks where space was a premium at the check-out counter or the
like, it presented other problems in that the bag handles of the
bag pack tend to slide off the rack arms when the bag is opened-up
and is being loaded by a user. This is caused because the looped
outer end portions 122 of each rack support arm 120 is constructed
to be of a width W generally equal to the length L of mounting
apertures A in the handles of the bags B to allow mounting of the
bag packs P on the rack 110. It should be understood that the width
of the support arm W and the length L of the aperture A in the
handles of the bag B are considered in a two dimensional sense as
shown in the drawings and correspond, respectively, to the
equivalent distance around the perimeter of the support arm and the
mounting aperture of the bag handles.
OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is the object of this invention to overcome all of
the above problems and provide a compact rack construction which
solves the space problems presented with the earlier prior art rack
constructions and which provides an outer end construction on the
rack support arms which allows easy mounting of the bag packs on
the rack, but which creates a resistance for free movement of the
bag handles off the outer ends of the rack support arms.
By this invention, it has been found that the above objects may be
accomplished by providing a rack for mounting a pack of
thermoplastic grocery or retail product bags of the defined T-shirt
type which includes generally the following construction.
A frame is provided, which is preferably of a size corresponding
generally to the open area between the laterally-spaced handles of
the bags and includes means for mounting the frame to a flat
vertical surface. A pair of generally horizontally and outwardly
extending laterally-spaced support arms are carried at one end by
the frame and have a horizontal portion and an outer end portion
for receiving the apertures in the handles of the bags in the pack
at the outer end portions and for mounting the bag pack on the
horizontal portion for consecutive opening-up for loading and
subsequent removal of the loaded bags from the bag pack and from
the rack.
Preferably, the lateral spacing of the support arms corresponds
generally to the lateral spacing of the mounting apertures in the
handles of the bags so that the handles of a bag pack extend
upwardly in their natural shape when the bag pack is mounted on the
rack. These support arms are preferably of a length less than the
outwardly extending dimensions of a bag opened for loading and
greater than the thickness of the bag pack. The frame of the rack
preferably is of a size corresponding generally to an open area
between the laterally-spaced handles of the bag and includes means
for mounting of the frame to a flat vertical surface. With these
dimensions and configuration, a compact rack construction is
provided which may be attached to a vertical surface and which
overcomes problems presented with space at the check-out counter or
the like.
Each of the horizontal support arms comprise an upper surface and a
lower surface. Each of the surfaces extends horizontally from the
frame to define the support arm horizontal portion therebetween,
and then extend upwardly from horizontal at predetermined different
angles and are joined at their outer ends to each other by a loop
surface formed with a smooth radius to define the support arm outer
end portion therebetween. The upward extension of the lower surface
is offset forward with respect to the upward extension of the upper
surface. With the above construction, the bag packs may be easily
mounted by sliding the mounting apertures in the handles thereof
over the outer end portion of each of the support arms and a
resistance is provided to free movement of the handles of the bags
off the outer end portions of the support arms.
Preferably, the width of the outer end portion of each of the
support arms measured parallel to the upwardly angled straight
surface (referred to as the mounting width) is generally no greater
than the predetermined length of the mounting apertures of the
handles of the bags to permit easy mounting of the bag packs on the
support arms. Preferably, the width of the free outer end portion
of each of the support arms measured vertically of the support arm
(referred to as the resistance width) is generally greater than the
predetermined length of the mounting apertures of the handles of
the bags to enhance the resistance to free movement of the bags off
the support arms.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Some of the objects and advantages of the invention have been set
forth above and other objects and advantages of the invention will
become apparent in the detailed description of preferred
embodiments of the invention to follow, when taken in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the above described
recently-introduced prior art compact rack construction for T-shirt
grocery or retail bags and shown attached to a vertical wall
surface and having a pack of T-shirt bags mounted thereon;
FIG. 2 is view, like FIG. 1, illustrating a first embodiment of the
compact rack of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the rack of this
invention shown in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a view, like FIG. 2, illustrating the forward most bag of
the bag pack in an open condition for loading;
FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view, taken generally along the line
5--5 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial side elevational view of a mounting
aperture in one of the bags of the bag pack shown on the rack in
FIGS. 2 and 5;
FIG. 7 is a sectional view, taken generally along the lines 7--7 of
FIG. 3 and showing generally a side elevational view of one of the
support arms of the rack of this invention and also showing a
support arm in dotted lines and superimposed thereon of the prior
art rack illustrated in FIG. 1;
FIG. 8 is a perspective detail of one of the support arms of the
rack of the present invention showing a bag being mounted
thereon;
FIG. 9 is a perspective detail of one of the support arms of the
rack of this invention showing a bag thereon and illustrating the
resistance provided to free movement of the bag off the outer end
of the support arm; and
FIG. 10 is a sectional view, like FIG. 5 without the bag pack
thereon, of a second embodiment of the compact rack of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to the drawings, a prior art compact rack 110 which
has recently been introduced by some rack manufacturers is
illustrated in FIG. 1 and has been described generally above.
The improved compact rack construction of this invention, generally
indicated at 10, is illustrated in FIGS. 2-10 with a first
embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2-9 and a second embodiment
illustrated in FIG. 10. This rack 10 is adapted for mounting a pack
P of thermoplastic grocery or retail product bags B of the T-shirt
type, as shown particularly in FIGS. 2, 4 and 5. These T-shirt type
bags B each include front and rear wall sections integrally
connected by gussetted side walls and connected at the bottom to
define a closed bottom on the bag (as shown generally in FIG. 4).
At least a part of the front and rear wall sections are open at the
top to define an open mouth portion M. Laterally spaced handles H,
integral with the front, rear and gussetted side wall sections,
extend upwardly from opposed sides of the mouth portion M and
include mounting apertures A of a predetermined length L formed
through the handle H.
The rack 10 of this invention includes a frame 11. This frame 11 is
preferably constructed of a bent wire member or members and is of a
generally rectangular shape and includes a plate 12 having screw
holes therein for adapting the frame 11 to be mounted on a flat
vertical surface by screws or the like. The size of this wire frame
11 preferably corresponds generally to the size of the open area
between the laterally spaced handles H and above the open mouth M
of the bags B (as shown generally in FIGS. 2 and 4) to cooperate
with other features of the rack 10 to provide the desired
compactness to the rack 10.
The frame 10 further includes a pair of generally horizontally and
outwardly extending laterally-spaced support arms 20 carried at one
end by the frame 11 and having a horizontal portion 21 and an outer
end portion 22 for receiving the apertures A of the handles H of
the bags B of the pack P at the outer end portion 22 and for
mounting the bag pack P on the horizontal portion 21 for
consecutive opening and removing of the bags B from the bag pack P
and from the rack 10.
Each of the support arms 20 comprise an upper wire member 24 and a
lower wire member 25 spaced from each other a predetermined
distance C and defining upper and lower surfaces of the support
arms. Each of these wire members 24, 25 extend horizontally at an
inner end from the frame 11 to define the support arm horizontal
portion 21 and are bent upwardly from horizontal at predetermined
different angles .theta..sub.1, .theta..sub.2 near an outer end
thereof and are joined at the outer end to each other by a loop
portion 26 formed with a smooth radius to define the support arm
outer end portions 22 which include upwardly angled upper and lower
straight portions 27, 28 joined by the loop portion 26. The bend in
the lower wire member 25 is off-set forward with respect to the
bend in the upper wire member 24 by a distance D to define a longer
upwardly angled straight portion 27 on the upper wire member 24
than the upwardly angled straight portion 28 on the lower wire
member 25 in the outer end portion 22 of the support arm 20. This
construction provides a resistance to free movement of the handles
H of the bags B off the outer end portions 22 of the support arms
20.
Preferably, the width W.sub.1 or mounting width of the outer free
end portion 22 of each of the support arms 20 measured parallel to
the angled straight portion 27 of the upper wire 24 or measured at
the angle .theta..sub.1, which is the mounting angle, is generally
no greater than the predetermined length L of the mounting aperture
A of the bag packs on the support arms 20. The width W.sub.2 or
resistance width of the free outer end portion 22 of each of the
support arms 20 measured vertically of the support arms 20 is
generally greater than the predetermined length L of the mounting
apertures A of the handles H of the bags B to enhance the
resistance to free movement of the bags B off the support arms
20.
In order to accomplish the above preferred relationship of the
mounting width W.sub.1 of the outer free end portion 22 of each of
the support arms 20 measured parallel to the angled straight
portion 27 of the upper wire 24 and the resistance width W.sub.2 of
the outer free end portion 22 of each of the support arms 20
measured vertically of the support arm 20 with respect to the
length L of the mounting apertures A of the handles H of the bags
B, various dimensions and angles can be utilized. These
relationships can be determined wherein W.sub.2 =W.sub.1 COS
.theta..sub.1 and D=(W.sub.2 -C)TAN .theta..sub.1.
As illustrated in FIG. 7, a preferred relationship may be obtained
wherein the length L of the apertures A in the handles H of the
bags B is about 1.12" (the standard aperture length for most
T-shirt bags of this type) and wherein the mounting width W.sub.1
also equals 1.12 to allow the bags to be easily mounted onto the
support arms 20 by sliding them on in a direction parallel to the
angled straight portion 27 of the upper wire 24 (as shown in FIG.
8), and the resistance W.sub.2 equals 1.19" to provide resistance
to free movement of the handles of the bags off the outer free end
portion 22 of the support arms 20 since this dimension resistance
W.sub.2 is greater than the length L of the aperture A of the
handle H of the bag B (as shown in FIG. 9). With these specific
dimensions, .theta..sub.1 equals 26.degree., .theta..sub.2 equals
48.degree., the spacing distance C equals 0.88" and the offset
distance D equals 0.67". This is in contrast to the looped outer
end portion 122 of the prior art rack of FIG. 1 (which is shown in
dotted lines and in superimposed position in FIG. 7) wherein the
width W of the free outer end portion 122 of the support arm 120
measured generally vertically of the support arm 120 is the same as
(not greater than) the length L of the aperture A of the handle H
of the bags B or 1.12" so that these apertures A may slide over the
outer end portion 122 of the prior art rack 120. However, this
dimension of the width W will not provide the desired resistance to
the free movement of the bags B off the support arms 120.
Various relationships, other than the ones set forth in the
previous paragraph, may also be utilized and obtain the advantages
of the present invention. The following Table sets forth various
acceptable relationships at mounting angles of 20.degree.,
30.degree., 40.degree. and 45.degree. and wherein the mounting
width equals 1.125".
______________________________________ .THETA..sub.1 C D W.sub.1
W.sub.2 D + W.sub.2 ______________________________________ 20 0.500
1.916 1.125 1.197 3.113 20 0.625 1.572 1.125 1.197 2.769 20 0.750
1.229 1.125 1.197 2.426 20 0.875 0.885 1.125 1.197 2.082 20 1.000
0.541 1.125 1.197 1.739 20 1.125 0.198 1.125 1.197 1.395 30 0.500
1.384 1.125 1.298 2.683 30 0.625 1.167 1.125 1.298 2.466 30 0.750
0.951 1.125 1.298 2.250 30 0.875 0.734 1.125 1.298 2.033 30 1.000
0.517 1.125 1.298 1.816 30 1.125 0.301 1.125 1.298 1.600 40 0.500
1.154 1.125 1.468 2.622 40 0.625 1.005 1.125 1.468 2.473 40 0.750
0.856 1.125 1.468 2.324 40 0.875 0.707 1.125 1.468 2.175 40 1.000
0.558 1.125 1.468 2.026 40 1.125 0.409 1.125 1.468 1.877 45 0.500
1.091 1.125 1.590 2.681 45 0.625 0.966 1.125 1.590 2.556 45 0.750
0.841 1.125 1.590 2.431 45 0.875 0.715 1.125 1.590 2.306 45 1.000
0.590 1.125 1.590 2.181 45 1.125 0.465 1.125 1.590 2.056
______________________________________ .THETA..sub.1 = MOUNTING
ANGLE (degrees) C = SPACING DISTANCE (inches) D = OFFSET DISTANCE
(inches) W.sub.1 = MOUNTING WIDTH (inches) W.sub.2 = RESISTANCE
WIDTH (inches)
The compact rack 10 further includes a retaining means 13 for
receiving and mounting a bag mounting tab T of the bags B through
an aperture formed therein. This retaining means 13 preferably
comprises a looped wire hook of sufficient length to provide a
surface to support the bag mounting tabs from the rear when a bag
on the front of the bag pack is engaged by a user to remove a bag
from the bag pack and the rack (as may be seen in FIG. 4). This is
in contrast to the hook 113 of the prior art rack 110, shown in
FIG. 1, which does not provide this support surface.
Referring now to FIG. 10, a second embodiment of a preferred
construction of the rack 10 of the present invention is set forth
therein. This FIG. 10 utilizes like reference characters for those
structural features of the second embodiment which are the same as
the structural features utilized in the first embodiment of the
invention illustrated in FIGS. 2-9 and a description of these like
structural features will not be repeated now.
This second embodiment of a compact rack 10 of FIG. 10 differs from
the first embodiment of compact rack 10 shown in FIGS. 2-9 in that
the lower wire member is bent downwardly from horizontal at a
predetermined angle designated as .theta..sub.3 to define a
downwardly angled straight portion 31 extending from the horizontal
portions 21 to the upwardly extending bend and the upwardly angled
straight portion 28. This extra bend and downwardly angled straight
portion 31 increases the resistance to free movement of the
aperture A of the handles H of the bags B off the support arms 20
of the rack 10. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 10, it has
been found that the preferred relationship may be accomplished
wherein .theta..sub.1 is 45.degree., .theta..sub.2 is 75.degree.,
.theta..sub.3 is 36.degree., W.sub.1 is 1.12", W.sub.2 is 1.141",
C=0.50" and D=0.66".
While the above preferred embodiments of the compact rack 10 of
this invention have been described as utilizing upper and lower
wire members to define upper and lower surfaces of the support
arms, it is certainly within the scope of this invention to utilize
other constructions of support arms, such as a solid stamp metal,
molded plastic, etc. construction. Also, the frame of the rack 10
of this invention has preferably been described as being formed
from wire members, it could also be formed from a stamped metal,
molded plastic, etc. construction.
In the drawings and specification, there have been set forth
preferred embodiments of this invention and although specific terms
are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only
and not for purposes of limitation. The scope of the invention is
defined in the following claims.
* * * * *